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Founded by the ABA in 1942, the American Bar Endowment is a §501(c)(3) not-for-profit organization composed of Members of the American Bar Association. ABE makes annual grants to the American Bar Foundation and ABA Fund for Justice and Education to fulfill ABE's charitable purpose of improving the administration of justice, one of our profession's highest obligations, by funding research, public service and educational projects in the field of law. ABE also maintains a Legal Legacy Fund for the permanent support of its grantees. By participating in the Endowment's insurance programs, designed for and available only to ABA Members, Members can contribute to these efforts. Attorneys who enroll in ABE-sponsored insurance programs agree that their share of any experience credits paid on the policies may be retained by the Endowment for its charitable purposes unless reclaimed as outlined below. The Internal Revenue Service has ruled that Members who leave their experience credits with the Endowment are eligible for a charitable contribution deduction on their individual income tax returns.

Members who donate experience credits to ABE make a difference. These funds, after administrative expenses, are the primary source of ABE's charitable grants and additions to the Legal Legacy Fund. Insured Members who donate experience credits help meet their professional and public responsibilities, as well as obtain valuable coverage for their families. About 85% of Members donate their experience credits; these Members are notified each year by late January of the amount, if any, of their experience credit donation for the prior year. (Experience credits are not guaranteed, and in any given year, a given plan may not pay experience credits; experience credits will vary from year to year.)

Members who wish to request a refund of their experience credits may do so. The approximate percentage of premium available for refund (if any) on each plan will be published in each November issue of the ABA Journal. You do not need to wait for this information as refund requests are accepted beginning January 1. To request that experience credits be paid to you rather than donated to ABE: After the first policy year of your participation, a written request for refund (by mail, fax, or e-mail to dividends@abendowment.org) must be made each year and must reach the Endowment by December 15. When ABE receives your refund request, it will send a confirmation. Retain it for your records as proof your request was timely received. If you do not receive a confirmation within 3 weeks, contact the ABE promptly to obtain another copy. (Special instructions for new applicants are contained in the application and apply to experience credits, if any, during the first policy year only.)

Experience credit checks and/or contribution notices for your tax return are mailed by late January. If you receive a contribution notice and you did not intend to make a contribution, you may request a one-time waiver of the December 15 deadline by asking for a refund, if you have not previously requested such a waiver.

Please note: Members who do not want to contribute experience credits to ABE must make a written request for refund each year, using the procedures above. When Members sign the application, they are agreeing to make an annual decision whether to contribute. Do not sign the application if you do not agree with these procedures.

How to Invest Contributions

When you create an ABE Charitable Gift Account, you can recommend how your contribution should be invested to meet your investment and giving goals. ABE offers five investment options, all managed by the renowned investment house of
Northern Trust Corporation.

Investment Strategies for the ABE Charitable Gift Fund

The ABE Charitable Gift Fund offers Donors the choice of five investment strategies ranging from aggressive to conservative, all overseen by one of the most respected names in financial services, Northern Trust Corporation.

The Aggressive Growth Strategy: This strategy seeks high capital growth over the Long term with a target allocation of 100 percent stocks: 50 percent U.S. large-cap stocks, 20 percent U.S. small-cap stocks, and 30 percent international stocks.

The Growth Strategy: This strategy offers the potential of a higher return but also a higher risk than the Balanced, Conservative, and Short-Term strategies. It seeks long-term capital growth by investing 45 percent in U.S. large-cap stocks, 15 percent in U.S. small-cap stocks, 20 percent in international stocks, and 20 percent in bonds.

The Balanced Strategy: This strategy seeks a moderate return through both capital growth and income with a target allocation of 35 percent in U.S. large-cap stocks, 10 percent in U.S. small-cap stocks, 15 percent in international stocks, and 40 percent in bonds.

The Conservative Strategy: This strategy seeks current income and relative stability of principal with a target allocation of 30 percent in U.S. large-cap stocks and 70 percent in bonds.

Short-Term Strategy: This strategy seeks current income and a high degree of stability with an investment allocation of 100 percent in Northern Trust's Short-Term Investment Fund (Money Market).

Five funds managed by Northern Trust Corporation comprise the investment options offered by the ABE Charitable Gift Fund. As one of the most respected names in financial services, Northern Trust manages more than $575.5 billion in assets.

The U.S. large-cap investments are in an S&P 500 Index Fund. Performance is reported gross of investment management fees, which are paid by ABE.

Performance as of 12/31/2018

Five years

One year

Quarter

8.54

-4.35

-13.49

The U.S. small-cap investments are in the Russell 2000 Small-Cap Equity Fund, which is an index fund that tracks the Russell 2000 Index. Performance is reported gross of investment management fees, which are paid by ABE.

Performance as of 12/31/2018

Five years

One year

Quarter

4.69

-10.79

-20.16

The international investments are in the InterCap Equity Index Fund, which is commonly used to represent the non-U.S. equity markets. The primary objective of the InterCap Equity Index Fund is to approximate the risk and return characteristics of the Morgan Stanley Europe, Australia, and Far East (MSCI EAFE) Index. Performance is reported gross of investment management fees, which are paid by ABE.

Performance as of 12/31/2018

Five years

One year

Quarter

0.77

-13.38

-12.43

The bond investments are in the Aggregate U.S. Bond Index Fund, which holds a portfolio representative of the overall U.S. bond and debt market, as characterized by the Barclays Capital Aggregate Bond Index. Performance is reported gross of investment management fees, which are paid by ABE.

Performance as of 12/31/2018

Five years

One year

Quarter

2.53

-0.02

1.61

The Short-Term Strategy investments are in the actively managed Short-Term Investment Fund, which is composed of high-grade money market instruments with short maturities, including certificates of deposit, commercial paper, and a money market fund. The performance numbers are reported net of the 15 basis point investment management fee.

Performance as of 12/31/2018

Five years

One year

Quarter

0.86

2.12

0.62

"Philanthropy is very important to me and my family. The ABE offers a great vehicle for managing charitable giving called the Charitable Gift Fund (CGF). The CGF allows ABA Members to make a donation for which they receive an immediate tax deduction. When convenient, donors can then recommend donations to other charitable organizations of his or her choosing. ABE handles all the paperwork, so philanthropy becomes what it should be - easy!"

OUR VISION: Making a difference by funding programs that advance the American justice system and the rule of law.

OUR MISSION: To generate funds for the support of law-related research, educational and public service projects by building and sustaining the Legal Legacy Fund and by sponsoring insurance and other programs for the legal profession that encourage charitable giving.